Wrench



July 28, 1931. J KERLIN 1,816,015

WRENCH Filed July 16, 1929 atbomwq Patented Jul 28, 1931 JAMES KEBLIN, or L9 AN CALIFORNIA WRENCH Application filed, July 16,

.My inventionrelates to wrenches adapted for a, varietyof uses, and is intended to replace] the cumbersome, expensive, unh andy, and ineflicient wrenches heretofore proposed. 5:? Itaccordinglyis an object of my invention to providera novel form of wrench, produced by a novel, efilci'ent and inexpensive method,

which wrench may be made in different forms as suggested in practice, and for difllcferent purposes, the finished product formingv an attractive appearance and ofsuch a configuration that-Jitmay be readily housed in the workmans belt or pockets, from which it may be quickly withdrawn and used, over- =00mi11g theobjectionable feature common inv known wrenches in that, due to the projections thereon, they stick, causing'annoyance and loss oi time, the form of my novel wrench, moreover, adapting, the same for use in close and remote places, where it is impossible to'use wrenchesof known forms. A further object of my invention is to pro vide anovel form of wrench equipped with ahandle, preferably cold drawn and of steel,

5 adding. greatly to its;strength, the product i being bright, straightandvaccurately finished, and thus being rapidly and cheaply produced, it being, of; course, also withinthe province of my invention to. produce the 1 same,- if desired, under hot conditions, insuring a more accurate job than would be produced bypcasting,whenj malleable or otherironis used. 4 I

A still-further object of my invention is to provide a novelform of wrenchhavinga handle, which maybe of tapered form, and providedwith a cut-out or cut-away portion, said handle having at least itsru'pper part hollow, and in whichpart is positioned a pair I ofj'aws having preferably flat and reversely taperedshanks adapted to slide in said part, said shanks being slidablein said cut-out or cut-away portion, means, operablenin. said cut-out or'cut-away portion, being associated 5 with at. least one ofsaid shanks whereby said jaws may be moved to the work. I The above and further objectsand advantages of my invention, as will hereinafter morefullyappear, I attaln by the constructionandimethod described inthe specifica.-,

1929. Serial No. 378,603.

tion, andillustrated on the drawings, forming a part of myapplication.

Reference is had to the accompanying drawings, in which similar reference characters denote similar parts. In the draw- 55 lngs,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one form of my invention, showing the jaws appliedto the work,

F ig. 2 is a fragmentary side elevational 6 view of another form of my invention,-showing thesame applied to different work,

Fig. 3 is a transverse cross-sectionalaviewtaken on the line 38, Fig. 2, looking inthe direction'of the arrows, and

F igfiis a view similar to Fig.2-but illustrating the manner in which the jaws are nested together. I

Describing myinventionmore in detail, in; its broader aspects said invention comprises 7 a novel form of wrench and a novel method of producing the same, said wrench comprising a suitable handle, preferablycold drawn and formed of steel, although it may be desirable to draw the-same hot,said handle being preferably tapered and at least partly hollow, and provided with acut-away portion for the reception of the ends of preferably res versely tapered shanks associated'with-a pair of jaws of desired form, there being meansassociated with at least one ofasaid shanks to function as a stop means, and also tonprevent the removal of said shanksand jaws from said handle.

The jaws with their shanks are preferably drop forged, and, ashereinbe-fore stated,-the handle of the wrench is preferably cold drawn, the'handles being then positioned in a milling machine, and cut out or cut away to receive the ends of the shanks of the jaws of the finishedproduct. 5 p

More specifically, my invention comprises a handle 2, preferably tapered from its j aw end to the other, to facilitate the insertion of the wrench within the 'workmans belt or pocket, as well asits withdrawaltherefrom, so it will not-stick therein, thus saving considerable time and annoyance, said handle being preferablyhollowat least'its upper 10C portion, which forms a yoke 4 that is preferone edge, if the handle 2 is flat as shown on the drawings, said handle is cut or milled out, as in practice preferred, to form the cut-out or cut-away portion 6, for a purpose presently to be explained. i

' The hollow portion of the handle 2 is adapted to house the jaws, designated generally by the reference numeral 8, said jaws comprising an outer jaw 10, and an inner jaw 12, having working faces 14 and 16 respectively, andcurved portions 18 and 20, respectively,

so that when said jaws are closed, said faces will be nested'together, the projection or stop engaging the upper portion of the yoke 4, to form a smooth configuration, to facilitate the insertion and removal of the wrench from the belt or pocket of the workman, causing a marked saving of time, in that the wrench will be ready for instant use.

The jaws 10 and 12 have. wedge-shaped shanks 24 and 26, respectively, which shanks are preferably reversely tapered as shown,

and are preferably drop-forged. The angles of the shanks 24 and 26 are important, although the same mayin practice be varied, depending upon the size and particular design of the wrench desired, to facilitate the ready operation of the jaws and shanks.

It will be noted that the jaws 10 and 12, whether fully extended or retracted, are always coextensive with, and within the confines of the projected outlines of the handle 2. This provides for ready manipulation of the wrench to the work, and .its removal therefrom. Moreover, it adapts the wrench to both close and remote work, the wrench being capable of use in locations where it is impossible to use the known wrenches.

The shanks and jaws are, of course, slidable relative to each other, and follow the inner contour of the yoke 4, which yoke, as hereinbefore stated, is coextensive with the handle 2.

To prevent the jaws and shanks from being accidentally removed from the wrench, a stop 28, which may be in the form of a suitable boss, is provided, and a thin 30, preferably made removable, so therjaws may be removed from thewrench when desired.

The inner'end of the outer shank 24 is provided. with a suitable extension 32, operable within the confines of the cut-away or cut--out portion 6, whereby the slidable jaws may be operated, but said jaws and shanks may be operated by engaging the thumb, either with the b05528 or the extension 32. A simple sliding movement of the thumb within. the cut-away portion 6, and the jaws may be made to engage the wrench 84, in Fig. 1, shown as a nut, the fingers engaging the outer jaw 10, whereupon the handle 2 may be quickly manipulated to remove said nut.

Another important feature of my improved nsiaol wrench is that the working faces18 and 20 of the jaws are always positioned at an angle (determined in practice) other than a right angle, to the center line of the handle 2, said faces always extending diagonally across the wrench. This permits a speedy application of the wrench to the work, and a square grip,

over, the engaging edge surfaces of the wedge shanks may be smooth as shown in Fig. 1, or they may be serrated as shown at 34' inFigs. 2 and 4, which prevents the shanks from sticking, and also retards their movement so the jaws may be easily applied to the work.

In Figs. 2-4 inclusive, I have shown .a slightly modified form of my invention, in which the jaws-10 and 12 are somewhat modified so that they may be applied to different work, as, for example, the pipe 34. In this case one of the work surfaces, for instance, the face 14, may be serrated, so as to provide an additional grip for engaging the pipe 34", the other face 16 being inclined, and not parallel, as is the case in the form depicted in Fig. 1. This provides an admirable grip for working, as repeatedly demonstrated in practice. I Another feature that maybe mentioned is that the cold drawn product will permit case hardening, which adds greatly tot-he strength with great particularity, it will beclear that the same may be modified throughout a wide range. I accordingly do not propose to be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, but reserve the right in practice to make any and all modifications thereof that fall within the scopeof the appended claims. I

I claim as my invention:

1. A wrench comprising a hollow handle tapered externally and internally from end to end, said handle having a cut-away portion on one edge, and a pair of movable jaws having within said handle, saidshanks having their ends positioned in said cut-away portion so that either may be engaged by the thumb While I have thus described my invention wedge-shaped shanks positioned,

wedge-sh aped end, said handle being provided with a cutout poriion, a pair of movable jaws having shanks, the outermost of which is of smaller dimensionsthan the innermost,*positioned within said handle and adapted to engage the inner walls thereof, said shanks having their ends positioned in said cut-out portions so either may be engaged to shift same, a thumb engaging means on said outermost shank for shifting said shank to the work, and means associated with said thumb engaging means for preventing the removal of said shanks from said handle. i

3. A wrench comprising ahollow tapering handle'having a cut-away portion, a pair of slidable jaws having shanks slidable in said handle, means on one of said shanks adapted to be operated within said cut-away portion for operating said jaws, and means positioned within the confines of the cut-away portion and lying entirely within the general con-,

tour of the handle if the cut-away portion be disregarded so as to present no entangling projections. 4. A wrench comprising a handle having a hollow tapered upper wedge-shaped portion integral and coextensive therewith, and a pair of wedge-shaped jaw members movable lengthwise of said portion, each jaw member having a gripping jaw extending across said portion and adapted to grip the work in a direct line with said handle, said handle being provided with a cut-away portion, and means associated with at least one of said jaw members, and operable within said cutaway portion, whereby said members may be operated. y

5. A wrench comp-rising a handle having a hollow, wedge-shaped yoke portion at its upper end and in direct alignment therewith, said handle being provided with a hollowed out portion extending from said hollow yoke portion, two aw members slidably mounted in said yoke portion, and one upon the other, said members having shanks with reversely tapered outer edges, said shanks being adapted to engage the walls of said yoke portion, and means on one of said shanks, and operable within said hollowedout portion for operating said members.

6. A wrench having a relatively long hollow tapering handle with straight sides and a reduced portion affording a longitudinally extending thumb opening located inone edge between the ends thereof, an outer jaw with a shank extending slidably in said handle and gradually increasing in width towards its inner end, an inner companion jaw with the tapering shank extending into said handle and slidably mounted on the shank of the outer jaw, said opening extending beyond the them to be manipulated by the thumb of the hand of the operator.

7. A wrench comprising a hollow handle tapered internally from end to end, said handle being cut away between its ends, a pair of movable jaws having wedge-shaped shanks corresponding to the inner taper of said handle, the ends of said shanks being shiftable across said cut-away portion, and a thumb engaging means associated with at least one of said shanks to limit their movement, said thumb engaging means being removable to permit said jaws to be removed from said handle.

8. A wrench comprising a handle provided with a hollow portion, part of said handle at said hollow portion being cut away, a pair of jaws having relatively movable shanks slidable in said handle, and means asssociated with at least one of said shanks, operable within said cut-away portion, and coacting therewith to control wedging action of said jaws and shanks whereby the removal of said wrench from the work may be facilitated.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

JAMES R. KER'LIN.

outermost position of the inner end of the short shank and the innermost position of the inner end of the longer shank to enable 

